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It’s official: The Vanguart Orb is the hottest watch on the planet. How do we know? Because John Mayer, Ed Sheeran, and now Michael Jordan—who wore one on the first installment of his new NBC Sports segment, “MJ: Insights to Excellence”—all say so. If you’re a regular GQ reader, you know those gentlemen are three of the most important watch collectors on Earth. Mayer’s piece unique APs and rare vintage Rollies are the stuff of horological legend, while Sheeran himself isn’t far behind. His Airness, meanwhile, has one of the most compelling lineups of modern sports watches and high-end independents in the world, with everything from Lange to Urwerk to Purnell figuring in his watchbox. But lately, there’s been One Watch to Rule Them All, and that watch has been the Vanguart Orb. Vanguart is a high-end independent brand established in 2017 by a group of industry vets, two of whom formerly worked for Audemars Piguet Renaud & Papi—the movement workshop under the AP umbrella that’s crafted bespoke calibers for Richard Mille, Parmigiani Fleurier, and more. Suffice it to say that APRP is, like Louis Vuitton’s La Fabrique du Temps, one of the watch world’s Skunkworks divisions; anyone who’s worked there has the means to devise some truly boundary-pushing timepieces. At the moment, Vanguart’s watches can only be had in the US at Material Good. Right off the bat, Vanguart dropped a debut model, the Black Hole Tourbillon, that cost more than a house in Minnesota. When they followed that watch up with the Orb in 2024 at roughly $180,000-$200,000, no one seemed to blink an eye. Or, at least guys like Mayer, Sheeran, and now, MJ didn’t: All three (in addition to Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor) picked one up, loving its unique dial and rotor, excellent ergonomics and comfort, and futuristic design. Jordan, like Mayer, owns (or can own) anything he darn well pleases: From the mid-’90s he’s been seen in the most important timepieces on Earth, from platinum first-gen Datographs to $2-million Purnell tourbillons. For him to drop roughly $210,000 on a watch from a brand that’s only been around for a few years is a testament to Vanguart’s bona fides—and to just how far the company has come since dropping its first model back in 2021. If you’re wondering what makes the Orb a $210,000 watch (or about $175,000 in titanium), it’s not necessarily the watch’s raw materials: Sure, the rose gold version—like the one Jordan wore on NBC—contains plenty of precious metal. But what you’re really paying for is the expertise and skill of some of the best minds in the horological game: Equipping their futuristic-looking Orb with a tourbillon; a skeletonized movement; a function selector for choosing between automatic and manual winding; a special peripheral rotor; a nearly perfectly symmetrical movement design; and excellent ergonomics, Vanguart managed to create a modern masterpiece. When you dial in that kind of perfect mix, you can charge big bucks—and serious heads with deep pockets will gladly fork over for a piece of the action. If Jordan’s into it, it’s clearly worth the price of admission. Jacob Elordi’s Audemars Piguet Bamboo Day-Date Moonphase While Frankenstein actor Jacob Elordi is generally a Cartier guy, the Australian actor swapped his Tank, for a vintage, highly complicated Audemars Piguet at the Newport Film Festival last week. Intriguing! Generally speaking, most folks who spring for an older AP would opt for an older Royal Oak, but Elordi went for something far cooler: a yellow gold, automatic day-date-moonphase watch with a bamboo-like bezel and a matching bracelet. Slim and elegant, it mixes Genta charm with AP’s distinctive approach to complications, resulting in the type of timepiece that collectors are going gaga for today—these pieces often trade in the high five figures. Ed Sheeran’s IWC Ingenieur Automatic 40 ref. IW328908 Worn by Brad Pitt’s character Sonny Hayes in F1, the ref. IW328908 is far and away the most unique of IWC’s Ingenieur Automatic 40 watches. Mega-collector Ed Sheeran knows this, which is why he rocked the green-dialed piece courtside at the Knicks home opener this week. Measuring 40mm in stainless steel, it features a stunning grid-pattern dial with applied rose gold furniture, a date window, an integrated steel bracelet, and IWC’s automatic cal. 32111 movement with a five-day power reserve and a 4-Hz beat rate. They retailed for a cool $13,600. Patrick Mahomes’s Hublot Spirit of Big Bang White Ceramic Kansas City QB Patrick Mahomes strode into Arrowhead Stadium ahead of the Chiefs’ game against the Raiders wearing the Hublot Spirit of Big Bang White Ceramic—precisely the type of high-tech sports watch we’d expect to see on the wrist of one of the world’s most talented athletes. Made of microblasted and polished white ceramic, the 42mm Spirit of Big Bang is powered by a skeletonized, automatic chronograph movement that can be seen via the transparent dial. Beyond this high-beat engine, it also boasts a rubber strap and 100m of water resistance, making it ideal for athletes. Regé-Jean Page’s IWC Ingenieur Automatic 40 ref. IW328702 There must be something in the water this week: Regé-Jean Page also elected to rock an IWC Ingenieur Automatic 40—although the reference he wore to the 2025 Academy Museum Gala in Los Angeles this week was a bit shinier than Sheeran’s: Made of solid 18-karat 5N gold, it features a matching, integrated bracelet and a cool black grid-pattern dial with solid gold dial furniture. Having proven super popular since its relaunch at Watches and Wonders 2023, the modern Ingenieur has steadily expanded with new (and flashier) references, with Page’s particular watch launching this past spring in Geneva.
